Ware aiming for hat-trick of wins over Borg

Swansea’s Chris ‘Mutley’ Ware (5-1, 2KO) is aiming to make it a hat-trick of victories over Cardiff’s Frankie Borg (9-3, 3KO) when the Welshmen complete their trilogy on Friday.The 32-year-old has beaten his peer in both the amateur and professional codes of boxing but says that doing it for a title would mean more than ever before. Ware said: “This win would mean the most to me, absolutely without doubt. The other two don’t really come close, to be honest. I’m not even thinking about them, they were what they were and they’re gone now. It’s all or nothing on this fight now. “I’m not taking those wins in to consideration. You can sit and read too much in to them. I’ve beat him twice and I know I can do it again but that’s all really. It doesn’t mean much for our next fight. “I don’t care about giving away tactics. When you’re in there, all tactics can go out of the window once you start going for it. I wouldn’t be surprised if he tried something different but either way, I’m going to put pressure on from the start and he’s got to keep me off, if he can.” That title is Borg’s Welsh Area title, a belt he has won and defended in wars against Bargoed’s Gary Cooper and Merthyr Tydfil’s Kerry Hope, respectively. Aware of the lengths he will have to go over the ten round distance, a respectful Ware is more than willing to go there and he’s grateful for his sporting rivalry with Borg. He said: “Me and Frankie get on fine, there’s no bad blood there whatsoever – that’s how it should be. I have total respect for him and I’m sure he has for me but I think it comes from the fact that when the bell goes, neither of us want to lose and won’t give an inch. It’s the best kind of rivalry really, an honest and solid rivalry. There’s no underlying bad feeling, it is what it is, he wants to win and so do I.” Having never been in the ring for longer than 12 minutes, the potential of 30 minutes may seen daunting to some but Ware isn’t fazed by the physical challenge in hand, having been through a tough training camp with former fighter turned trainer, John Kaighin. He said: “Obviously, my training has changed slightly. I’m not worried about the rounds, I’m looking forward to it. If it goes that far – great, I’ve trained for it and doing some workouts that are really hard. I can’t wait for the challenge and it’ll be nice to do 10 rounds if that’s what it takes. No problem. “I’ve stepped up the intensity and made it a bit more specific but at the same time, you’ve got to get some rest, as well. Everyone who knows me, knows I probably do too much in general. So, this week, I’ve been looking forward to not doing quite so much, reserve my energy and get the balance.” As owner of the successful Funky Pump Fitness Gym franchise, Ware spends almost all of his days in the gym training members and clients. It was that lifestyle that allowed the Welshman to accept December’s four round fight with Borg on less than 10 hours’ notice, which he won on points, and he’s had longer to prepare this time around. Ware said: “I’ve had plenty of notice. I don’t know if it’s a benefit or a hindrance really. In a way, looking back at the last fight, it probably did me good. Thinking about it, there’s probably a good argument that I could overthink things. It won’t matter to me, though. At the end of the day, it’s a boxing match. “I’ll be feeling relief if I win because it’s something I’ve wanted to do for a long time. To accomplish that, it would be a massive thing for me. I’m a very busy guy and I probably haven’t got time to do it but when I set my mind to something, I’m determined to achieve it. From a personal note, this is very important to me. It’s the biggest thing in my boxing career by a mile.”The notice has also given Ware time to sharpen his skills, especially with sparring which has included rounds with Commonwealth light-middleweight champion Liam Williams. The Welshman feels he’s covered all bases but is confident what Borg will bring, knowing his opponent so well. Ware concluded: “I’ve had plenty of sparring and some good rounds with a variety of guys. Luckily, or unluckily for one of us, we know each other quite well. So, there’s not going to be any big surprises with the style of fight. I am expecting Frankie to try something new but I don’t think he’s going to want to meet me in the middle of the ring again. We’ll see though, won’t we?” IMAGE BY SOPHIE MERLO.